As soon as the walk sign changed, we entered the crosswalk. We had to cross twice at the intersection before walking a bit farther to get to The Chicken Place. We were almost halfway across when a loud cracking sound filled the air. Then the ground shook.
“Daddy, what was that?” Kirin’s voice shook.
I didn’t know whether to stay still or run, sure it was more than just an emergency vehicle coming down the road. Lifting Kirin into my arms, I held him tight and rushed to cross the last four lanes of traffic.
We didn’t make it.
The car beside us nose-dived into a sudden hole before the ground disappeared beneath my feet. We were falling.
Down, down, down.
I closed my eyes and braced for the moment we crashed into the bottom.
The bottom never came.
Suddenly, something grabbed me from above and jerked me up. There was a sharp pain in my shoulders, but it was better than the crunch of bones I’d expected. I gripped Kirin tighter, fearful of dropping him.
Taking a chance, I opened my eyes to see what had a hold of me, what had rescued us.
I gasped when I saw talons embedded in my shoulders and the stomach scales of a large beast above me.
I’d never been happier to see a dragon in my life.
Chapter Twelve
Blaze
Back at the station, I stepped out of the truck. The ground rumbled right before I heard a scream.
Immediately, my dragon fought for control. I ran toward the sound, but I couldn’t stop the shift. My clothes tore as my wings ripped out of my back. They stretched and flapped while the rest of my body elongated and grew scales as I hovered above the ground.
In seconds, I was in my dragon form, my fastest shift ever. One I failed to control.
Then I saw them. Ladon holding Kirin. Falling into the gaping hole where the road had disappeared beneath their feet.
I swooped down, digging my claws into Ladon’s shoulders, trying not to hurt him and hoping he had a good grip on his son.
Flapping harder, I lifted them up and carried them over to the station where I believed they’d be safe and get any medical attention they needed.
“Blaze, wait,” Ladon called.
I didn’t acknowledge him, instead flying back to the sinkhole. They hadn’t been the only ones swallowed up by the ground. As I’d transported them to safety, I’d caught sight of a car, rear-end up. As an emergency responder, even in my dragon form, I refused to leave the sight until I knew everyone was safe.
The hole wasn’t wide enough for me to fully extend my wings and stay flying. I had to let myself free fall before landing in front of the car with a thump. The horn of the car blared, and I shook my head, my hearing supersensitive in my dragon form.
I swung my neck around to peer in the driver’s side window. There was someone inside. Though I couldn’t see any movement, I heard the beat of their heart above the blare of the horn. There weren’t any passengers. Only one person to rescue.
I had to get them out, but I didn’t believe it to be safe to grab hold of the vehicle and carry it out. Setting the car down would jerk the driver and likely cause more damage. I had to wait for one of the other firefighters to come down and help me extract the driver.
The moment I saw a rope drop over the edge of the hole, I returned to my human and very naked form. Then I shouted over to the descending firefighter. “One victim. Still breathing but not moving. Driver of a now-vertical sedan.”
“I have to admit, your dragon form is pretty cool.” Makhail walked toward me carrying a basket stretcher. He put the stretcher down and tossed some clothes, boots, and a helmet toward me. “But I prefer not to see your bare ass. Cover up while I check the victim.”
I quickly dressed then joined him at the car. By the time I got there, the driver was moving and moaning, begging for help to get out.
Makhail reached in and put a collar around his neck.
Before we could figure out a way to free him from his seat belt and the crushed front end without causing more harm, the man shifted. One moment, he was trapped in the vehicle; the next, he slumped onto the ground as a squirrel. I had never experienced any emergency victims shift during a rescue. The little creature was limp and lying on its side as it gasped for air.
